Mark Glover's blog includes reviews of the latest motor vehicles introduced for sale in the United States, his take on various aspects of the auto industry and periodic insights on auto racing at home and abroad.

Friday, September 14, 2012

Flex fits a certain niche in Ford's lineup

Sacramento,
California – Not long ago, I did
a review of the Ford Flex that was, well, less than flattering.

I caught hell for it from various folks, not coincidentally
all of whom worked in some capacity for the Ford Motor Co.

It wasn’t that I did not like the Flex. I was mystified by its existence – a massive,
gas-guzzling vehicle among other Ford cars that were sending out the precise
message Ford wanted to send: We make affordable, dependable vehicles and put a
very high priority on gas mileage.

As for the 2013 Flex – freshened for the upcoming model year
– I confess that my feelings about the vehicle are pretty much unchanged.

HOWEVER, let me say that the Flex is an outstanding vehicle
for a target audience of large families, heavy cargo carriers and folks who
regularly head out on the open road for long recreational trips.

If that’s what you dig, this Flex is for you.

My tester was a 2013 SEL AWD, a six-passenger (other Flex
models can take up to seven) with a 3.5-liter V-6 (285 horsepower) and a
starting price of $35,175. Gas mileage
was advertised at 17 miles per gallon in the city and 23 mpg on the
highway. My baby was dressed up in
extras that pushed the bottom line on the sticker to $41,935.

That’s a pricey meatball, but the comfort, convenience and
safety perks were luxury level enough to justify the cost. Seriously! Extras on mine included a
panoramic vista roof, a very nice touch.

Make no mistake about it: This is a very big vehicle. It fills up a parking space, and the unique
exterior styling makes it downright imposing … that’s imposing in an impressive
way. It’s sort of like a Range Rover on
steroids. Ford calls it a crossover, but
I find that impossible. Think SUV all
the way.

On the roll, it’s actually quite smooth, but on a freeway
merge ramp, you must really sink your right foot deep to the floorboard. Ditto at the top of a steep hill. Interior quiet was surprisingly good. The brakes brought the big brute to a stop
much quicker and firmer than I expected.

If you, the wife and kids routinely take six-hour drives on
the roadways, this is the way to roll.
The Flex is like a rolling living room, without the extra size and
hassle of a motor home. If you haul a
lot of kids and groceries from place to place (or sporting event to sporting event),
the Flex is your cup of tea.

If you commute in a crush of daily urban gridlock and park
in tight downtown lots, I would not opt for the Flex.

For some reason, Ford installed those annoying turn signals
where you can’t tell if it’s going to blink once, twice or 50 times, and the
steering column-mounted turn signal baton actually moves around in different
positions. I never mastered it.

For my money, the Flex is better now than it was
before. Yet it’s still a niche vehicle
in Ford’s otherwise economical, fuel-sipping fleet.

Auto Enthusiasts

About

Mark Glover has been a professional journalist for 40 years. Since 1984, he has worked for The Sacramento Bee in California's capital city. He was the paper's auto editor from 2000-08, reviewing hundreds of motor vehicles during that time. His reviews currently appear at sacbee.com and in the Northern & Central California Cruisin' News published monthly out of Folsom, California. He is a former director on the board of the California Autombile Museum in Sacramento. A lifelong auto racing fan, Glover has attended the Indianapolis 500 since 1961. He has an extensive Indy 500 collection of programs, tickets and badges.